Daewoong Pharmaceutical announced on the 8th that it has signed a memorandum of understanding for technology cooperation in AI drug development with the research department of Korea University Anam Hospital. This agreement aims to establish a mutually cooperative system by integrating Daewoong Pharmaceutical's extensive drug development experience and AI drug development capabilities with the research competitiveness stemming from the medical data resources owned by Korea University Anam Hospital, which is a research-oriented hospital. Through this agreement, both parties plan to promote the sharing of technologies and resources necessary for AI drug development and research, as well as the provision and utilization of genomic data, biological data, and clinical data.
KoBioLabs announced on the 8th that it has received a decision on the registration of a U.S. patent for liver damage treatment materials derived from the human microbiome. Metabolic syndrome-associated liver disease (MASLD) refers to liver diseases related to metabolic abnormalities that can lead to simple steatosis, progressive fibrosis, and liver cirrhosis. MASLD is showing an increasing trend parallel to obesity and metabolic syndrome patients, with rising prevalence globally. KoBioLabs confirmed the effectiveness of improving liver damage in patients with insulin resistance using functional strains from the genus Luminococcus that it owns. In particular, the functional strain exhibited an excellent effect on reducing serum ALT/AST levels, fibrotic gene expression, and liver weight ratio compared to body weight, and significantly increased the concentration of secondary bile acids in the cecum.
FutureChem announced on the 8th that the final results of a Phase 2 clinical trial for the prostate cancer treatment radiopharmaceutical candidate FC705 have been released. The purpose of the clinical trial was to evaluate the safety and efficacy after administering 100 mCi of FC705 to 20 patients with castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer (mCRPC) at intervals of eight weeks for a maximum of six times. In the efficacy evaluation for this domestic Phase 2 clinical trial, the final analysis set patients (FAS) were used as the primary evaluation group, involving a total of 15 participants. The average number of administrations was confirmed to be 3.4 times, while the average administered dose per time was half that of competing drugs at 100 mCi, but patients with a reduction of over 50% in PSA, a blood biomarker used for evaluating prostate cancer treatment, reached up to 73.3%.
Next Biomedical announced on the 8th that it operated an exhibition booth for its independently developed biodegradable arthritis pain embolization microsphere product 'Nexsphere-F™' at the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR 2025) held in Nashville, U.S. The SIR conference is the largest annual gathering of over 7,000 interventional radiology experts, medical staff, researchers, and industry representatives, serving as an important platform that leads the latest treatment technologies and medical device trends. Nexsphere-F is the only arthritis embolization product that has obtained European CE certification, recently demonstrating pain reduction effects and low side effects across various joint inflammation. The results were published in a recent issue of the international radiology journal JVIR.
Xcell Therapeutics announced on the 8th that it has signed a contract for exclusive distribution and sales of T-cell media in China with China's bio raw material and cosmeceutical specialist, Bluemaid Biotechnology. Following the strategic memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in December last year for the supply of T-cell media, this contract marks the launch of full-scale sales of Xcell Therapeutics 'CellCor' media in China, one of the world's largest biopharmaceutical markets. The contract period is until March of next year, and the details will remain confidential under the nondisclosure agreement between the two companies.
Korea GSK announced on the 8th that it held a satellite symposium sharing the latest insights on the prevention of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections at the 2025 Spring Conference of the Korean Society of Antimicrobial Therapy and the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases. Arixvi, Korea GSK's RSV vaccine, was approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in December last year to prevent lower respiratory tract disease (LRTD) caused by RSV in adults aged 60 and older. In this symposium, which introduced Arixvi to medical staff for the first time since its domestic approval, Professor Park Wan-beom from Seoul National University Hospital's Department of Infectious Diseases participated as a speaker, presenting on the topic of 'Understanding the Disease Burden of RSV Infections and Introduction of the RSV Vaccine Arixvi.'
Deep Bio announced on the 8th that the results of a large-scale prostate cancer study conducted in collaboration with Pusan National University Medical School were published in the international journal Scientific Reports by the Nature Publishing Group. According to the company, this study involved analyzing a total of 29,646 digital pathology whole slide images from prostate cancer patients who underwent radical prostatectomy, demonstrating that Deep Bio's AI-based pathology image analysis algorithm is clinically effective in classifying Gleason grades of prostate cancer and quantifying tumor volumes, as well as providing meaningful prognostic predictions.
Neurophet announced on the 8th that it has settled into the Connect & Development (C&D) incubation office at the Cambridge Innovation Center (CIC) in Boston, U.S. Neurophet was selected for the C&D incubation office residency support program conducted by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute as part of its 'K-Blockbuster Global Expansion Support Project' in February this year. CIC, established in 1999, is a shared office located in Kendall Square, Boston. The company plans to enhance its capabilities for U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its AI-based brain imaging analysis solutions through this residency and expand clinical research collaborations with global pharmaceutical and new drug development companies.
Hahi announced on the 8th that it has obtained item approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for its digital therapeutic device 'Anzirex' for generalized anxiety disorder. Anzirex has been undergoing clinical trials at Gangnam Severance Hospital for severe generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) patients since 2022 with the support of the Ministry's project for medical device research and development across multiple ministries. This product is a software medical device that provides self-talk training based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to improve generalized anxiety disorder, offered in the form of a mobile application that can be used on phones and other devices.
Ajou University Hospital announced on the 8th that Professor Yang Jeong-in from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology received the Presidential Citation at the 53rd Health Day commemorative event. Professor Yang was recognized for establishing a medical delivery system for high-risk pregnant women in the southern Gyeonggi area and operating a 24-hour delivery center, providing a rapid and safe delivery environment even during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, Professor Yang contributed to the establishment of a safe and happy childbirth culture for mothers with disabilities by developing standardized prenatal examination protocols and producing and distributing related manuals. She also implemented the 'Healthy Meal Program for Pregnant Women' in Gyeonggi Province, demonstrating the effectiveness of preventing pregnancy complications such as reducing maternal blood pressure and preventing premature and low birth weight deliveries.
Yonsei University Yongin Severance Hospital announced on the 8th that Professor Lee Gyeong-won from the Department of Emergency Medicine received the National Award for Merit in Public Health at the 53rd Health Day commemorative ceremony. Professor Lee has dedicated about 26 years to treating emergency patients and has been active in educating residents and medical students, conducting emergency medical research, publishing papers, and participating in various academic activities to advance the scholarship of emergency medicine and promote the modernization of emergency medical systems. In particular, during the emergency medical response period that began in February of last year, he maintained the emergency medical field and contributed to enhancing public understanding and cooperation regarding emergency medicine through numerous interviews and contributions to the press as the public relations director of the Korean Society of Emergency Medicine, correcting misconceptions such as 'emergency room loop-running.'
The Korea Health Industry Development Institute announced on the 8th that it has received the highest grade in all areas of the public data provision operation status evaluation, data-driven administration assessment, and public data quality certification, which is conducted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety in 2024. This evaluation and certification were carried out for a total of 679 institutions, including central government departments, local governments, and public institutions, focusing on areas such as public data opening and utilization, data-driven policy application, and data quality management. As a result of this evaluation, the institute received recognition for its opening and utilization of public data and high-quality system in both the 'Public Data Provision Operation Status Evaluation' and 'Public Data Quality Certification,' achieving the highest grade for three years and two years consecutively, respectively.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on the 8th that it will hold the '2025 Exhibition and Promotion Market for Products Made by People with Disabilities' at Cheonggye Plaza in Seoul for two days starting from the 9th, in commemoration of the 45th Day of Persons with Disabilities on the 20th. The exhibition and promotion market aims to support the development of private market sales channels for products made by people with disabilities through the promotion and awareness enhancement of these products from vocational rehabilitation facilities for individuals with disabilities. This year's promotion market will feature 47 facilities, including nationwide vocational rehabilitation centers for people with disabilities, showcasing and selling over 300 products, including processed foods, daily necessities, accessories, and office supplies, while providing tasting and sampling booths for visitors to try the food and beverages.